I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to retaining devices such as hangers or holders or and lanyards for magnetically holding various devices. More particularly, the present invention relates to detachable, magnetic retainers comprising detachable hangers that are magnetically coupled to detachable holders that removably or temporarily hold or restrain miscellaneous devices including cell phones and their accessories, UPC scanners, electronic instruments and devices, vapor cigarettes, key chains, miscellaneous tools and the like.
II. Description of the Prior Art
Portable electronic cell phones are ubiquitous in modern life. These relatively small electronic devices are carried by almost everyone, and they provide reliable communications throughout the world. They are commonly used in vehicles, automobiles, trucks, recreational vehicles and the like where they can be difficult to conveniently store within easy reach of a driver. It is often difficult to conveniently stow hand-held cell phone within a vehicle interior as a proper receptacle to storage compartment is seldom available within vehicle interiors.
When transported by an individual, hand-held units can be carried upon the user's person or within brief cases, pockets, or purses. Often cell phones fall out of a user's hands or pockets, resulting in loss or damage. Even when carried within a brief case or a large purse, they can be difficult to retrieve within the maze of other personal objects carried by the user.
Modern cell phones usually include a small, plastic, rectangular housing formed of molded plastic, within which a digital electronic circuit, an antenna, a battery and associated components are secured. Typically at least one plastic backing or covering is removable to expose the battery or other internal components. In most units the battery is supported at the rear of the cell phone housing to maximize the available front surface to be used for controls and display. The battery or battery pack is secured to the housing by a snap-latch mechanism which is sufficiently reliable and secure to support the weight of the entire cell phone. In some manufacture devices, the battery pack includes an integral clip or holding attachment suitable for securing to the user's belt or purse or other convenient areas. The front usually mounts a display and plurality of icons for dialing and controlling the phone. The sides and ends of a typical cell phone mount a plurality of input and output jacks or connections adapted for headphones, Bluetooth devices, USB computer connections, re-chargers, external amplifiers or headphones and the like.
A variety of retainers or holding devices have been proposed in the art for maintaining cell phones in convenient locations. Holding devices using the magnetic holding force of permanent magnets are known in the prior art. Typically a strong magnet at one end of a device embraces a similar magnet or magnetically attractive ferrous article in a neighboring device. When a pair of magnets are arranged so that their opposite poles face each other, a strong binding attractive force results.
Conventional mechanisms to attach a cell phone to a lanyard or hanger align the magnets or ferrous materiel in a direction that minimizes manufacturing costs. This direction is usually transverse to the longitudinal axis of the cell phone, for example. This inferior alignment design enables a sliding effect downwardly, as the magnetic pull strength is not maximized. Also, some prior designs have a magnet that is permanently attached to the phone or phone case, but it is neither removably attached nor designed for after market installation.
The known prior art fails to reveal after-market cell phone attachments or accessories that are removably attached to the cell phone or other device by the user, and which include magnets for removably suspending or coupling the cell phone to a lanyard or hanger detachably worn by the user.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,129,477 issued Apr. 21, 1964 discloses a releasable and separable magnetic jewelry clasp for a bracelet, necklace, or the like. The clasp comprises a pair of ferrules joined to the main body. A first magnet extends from one of the ferrules and is received by a bore present in the other ferrule, and a second magnet or magnetically receptive metal member is disposed within the bore. When the two ferrules are joined, the first magnet abuts the second magnet or metal member in order to maintain the clasp closed.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,901,405 issued Feb. 20, 1990 discloses a self-aligning magnetic necklace clasp. A cylindrical insert fits through a retainer ring into a tubular chamber in which it is held by a magnetic structure.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,050,276 issued Sep. 24, 1991 discloses a magnetic clasp comprising two mirror image halves, each of which is attached to the ends of a necklace. Each half has a magnetic shell and an inserted magnetic core. The shell has a cylindrical body with a cone-shaped end. The magnetic core is made of samarium cobalt or neodymium iron. Both are strong magnets and allow the clasp to be very small in size so that it is aesthetically pleasing. The end of each half has an eyelet for connecting to a necklace. A conventional fastener can be soldered to one eyelet so that the clasp can be added to an existing necklace. A safety catch can be added to the clasp as a back-up safety feature for expensive jewelry.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,197,168 issued Levy Mar. 30, 1993 discloses magnetic jewelry closures that may be used as a replacement clasp for jewelry.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,992,807 issued Nov. 30, 1999 discloses a magnetic stand for cell phones. A cell phone is removably attached to the dashboard of a vehicle by a magnet that is permanently secured to the dashboard of a vehicle. The cell phone is removably retained by the magnet (due to the attraction between the magnet and the metal parts normally found in the cell phone) and the cell phone may be lifted off manually and manually replaced on the magnet.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,640,398 issued Hoffman Nov. 4, 2003 discloses a magnetic clasp for jewelry wherein separable bodies are temporarily fastened together by magnets that have been poled to present opposed surfaces of opposite magnetic polarities. In a first embodiment, disk-like magnets are received in channels of mating elongated body members of like configuration. End flanges of the elongated body members, in addition to the disk-like magnets, provide axial resistance to separation while the resultant magnetic force prevents separation in the transverse direction. In a second embodiment, disk-like magnets of divided polarities are seated at ends of mating bodies. A pin-and-slot locking mechanism is formed in the two bodies and the magnets are oriented relative thereto so that resultant repulsive magnetic forces force the two magnets into mating alignment when in the longitudinal slot for maximum magnetic holding force.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,149,116 issued Nov. 21, 2000 discloses a holder for a mobile telephone comprising a main body to which a mobile telephone is magnetically attached, and an attachment supporting means for attaching the main body to the surface of an object such as a vehicle dashboard. The magnetic attachment means includes a magnet fixed to the main body, and a piece of iron attachable to the back of the mobile telephone and attachable to the magnet by magnetic force.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,888,940 issued May 3, 2005 discloses a magnetic holder for cell phones and the like. The holder has a cup formed of a ferromagnetic material within which a magnet is supported. The rear surface of the cup includes a double-sided adhesive pad attach the holder to a supporting surface or structure such as a vehicle dashboard. The cell phone is secured to the holder cup magnetic attraction. Differing attachments, such as suction cups or belt clips, may retain the magnetic holder to the dashboard or other support.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,945,503 issued Sep. 20, 2005 discloses a portable magnetic object holder having a mounting plate embedded with at least one magnet for holding a magnetic object, such as a tool or instrument, on one surface of the mounting plate. A strap is attached to the mounting plate for mounting the mounting plate to a user or to an object.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,172,283 issued Feb. 6, 2007 discloses a magnetic eyeglass device for temporarily affixing eyeglasses to articles of clothing worn by the user. A strong pair of magnets is attached with pliable, flexible rings to the eyeglass frames. The magnets connect together when the eyeglass frames are closed, forming a tight hold whenever the glasses are clasped together. The closed eyeglasses can then be easily and securely attached or retained to a belt, pocket, purse, or to an article of clothing.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,431,251 issued Oct. 7, 2008 discloses a magnetic mounting platform for removably retaining hand held devices using magnetic attraction. The magnetic mounting platform attaches to an external mounting surface and holds a permanent magnet.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,441,917 issued Oct. 28, 2008 and U.S. Pat. No. 7,708,421 issued May 4, 2010 discloses illuminated jewelry articles utilizing a magnetically connectable clasp. Each clasp component includes a vertex end and a magnetically attractable base. At least one of the clasp components contains a magnet thereby allowing the clasp components to be magnetically connectable in base-to-base relation without requiring precise manual alignment.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,496,991 issued Avery Mar. 3, 2009 provides a portable securement system for docking eye wear to a user's garment for temporary safekeeping. A pendant holds a magnet secured at the device's bottom to secure eye wear for easy retrieval.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,553,018 issued Jun. 30, 2009 discloses an eyeglass holder attachable to clothing, office and shop equipment, handbags or the like, wherein a magnet can attach the eyeglass holder to a ferrous metallic surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,889,036 issued Feb. 15, 2011 discloses another magnetic holding device. The holding device keeps together and releases two elements that are relatively movable to each other.
Other magnetic eyeglass holders are seen in U.S. Pat. No. 7,857,445 issued Dec. 28, 2010, U.S. Pat. No. 6,367,126 issued Apr. 9, 2002, and U.S. Pat. No. 7,296,889 issued Nov. 20, 2007.
Another reference of interest is U.S. Pat. Application Publication No. 2006/0124676, published Jun. 15, 2006.
Thus, despite the prior art aforesaid, there is a need for improved retainers for cell phones (and similar devices), and properly configured magnetic retainers are needed. The orientation of the magnets must be characterized by an alignment that results in maximum holding strength. In other words, there is a need for a connection scheme for an improved magnetic retainer, and its associated attachments, where items retained by the device are held dependably, and do not slide off.
I have found that the connecting magnets must be properly aligned. By way of example, when a phone held with my retainer device is suspended by a lanyard worn about the users neck, the longitudinal axis of the magnets is normal to ground. Stated another way, when my retainer is worn about the neck of a user and hangs down, the poles of the connecting magnets occupy a line such that the north and south poles of a first magnet are vertically aligned with the north-south poles of the other magnet, and the alignment is generally “vertical” or perpendicular to ground.
Further, there is a need for retainers that employ a holder portion removably attached to a cell phone, which holder provides a magnetic union that can be removably coupled to and suspended by a cooperating hanger portion that removably suspends the phone or device from the user. In each instance, it is important that a retainer comprises a hanger and holder that are coupled together magnetically, wherein the holder is removably coupled by magnetic attraction to the hanger.